The good news: There's an uptick in the hiring of new teachers since the pink-slip frenzy in the wake of the Great Recession.

The bad news: The new hiring hasn't made up for the teacher shortfall. Attrition is high, and enrollment in teacher preparation programs has fallen some 35 percent over the past five years — a decrease of nearly 240,000 teachers in all.

Parts of most every state in America face troubling teacher shortages: the most frequent shortage areas are math, science, bilingual education and special education.

Tight school budgets mean teachers might not have enough money to supply their own classrooms. So some spend their own money and hit the discount stores. Increasingly, these days, teachers are also turning to crowdfunding websites to buy things as simple as markers and construction paper.

A charity that former Wisconsin Senator Herb Kohl runs is the latest group to lend teachers a hand.

It’s happening all over the country: more teachers are leaving the field of education. On top of that, fewer young adults are entering the profession. It’s a phenomenon happening right here in the greater Milwaukee area.

Mary worked as a public school teacher in Milwaukee for 18 years. We’re not using her full name because she still does some work for her former district.

For years, the Menominee Indian School District has posted some of the worst test scores and graduation rates in Wisconsin. While the district still struggles, it has been on an upswing, particularly when it comes to graduation rates.

One likely reason - it now employs more teachers who share the students’ culture and history.